


All the Love at Once

by GretchenSinister



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Discussion of Death, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 17:27:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17207762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GretchenSinister/pseuds/GretchenSinister
Summary: Original Prompt: "When watching the movie I found Jack’s reaction to discovering his past strange and worrying. He was happy to discover he’d had a home and family, yet didn’t seem to recognise that fact that he’d both drowned and that his family was long lost to him still.So Jack, in the quiet after their victory, suddenly finds himself hit hard with the fact that he died and that by this time his family is also long dead. Perhaps reflecting on the cruelty of after dying in ice and cold he is now the personification of that.Bonus: One of the others comes and shares their own story, helping him to deal with this"Jack goes to talk with Tooth after the battle.





	All the Love at Once

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on Tumblr 5/28/13.

“Tooth.” The battle is over, and after returning to the Pole, Jack has decided to visit the Tooth Palace. There are things he needs to talk about, and though he’s come to look up to North a great deal in the past few days, these things have to do with his memories. And they aren’t very wondrous at all. So he will go to Tooth.

“Jack!” she smiles, pleased to see him, as always. She sobers, though, when she sees his expression. “What is it?”

He flies over to perch on the balcony she’s hovering over. “Do you know what was in my memory box?”

“I can, if you give me a moment.”

“No, that’s all right. I—I actually kind of want to talk about it.”

Tooth settles down, alighting on the balcony platform. “Go ahead, Jack.” She gently presses her hand to his arm. “I’m here to listen. We keep the most important memories here, but we’re well aware that the most important memories aren’t necessarily always good.”

Jack nods, his throat suddenly tight. “My memories—it wasn’t that they weren’t good—I mean, the last one wasn’t, but that wasn’t so bad still. I kind of expected it, you know? I started off from under the ice, and I had to get there somehow, and I always kind of figured there’s only so many ways to become immortal—”

“Breathe, Jack.”

He does, and though the breath is a little shuddery, when he begins to talk again, he seems more collected. “I saw my family. My mother, my sister. All the people I knew. I had a home, I was loved, there were those I loved. I hadn’t felt anything like that in so long, and when I opened the memory box I felt all that love at once. I didn’t really get to think about it until after the battle, and…” he laughs a little. “Frankly I almost surprised I survived. After so long without anything like that…and then when I let myself think about it, I had time to realize that all that love I felt, all those people I cared about—they weren’t really restored to me. They’re still gone. They have been for centuries.” Jack goes quiet, feeling tears begin to gather in the corners of his eyes. “And now. Now, I’m afraid I won’t feel anything like that ever again. Even begin believed in isn’t the same as having a family. I can even begin to sympathize—well, that’s something to think about after this.”

Tooth takes his hands in hers, and looks up into his eyes. “They’ll never be gone, Jack. Not now that you have your memories back. You’ll always carry their love with you. Just as you would if you had grown up. Gotten old. Outlived them.”

“But what about now? What about tomorrow? All the rest of the future? Will all I have be memories?”

“No, Jack,” Tooth gives him a small smile. “You’re with the Guardians now. And though you’re just getting to know us, I think that maybe—maybe we could start to be your family. North, Bunny, Sandy—they are for me. I’ve lost everyone too, over the centuries. We all have. But we still have each other. And I know I’d like you to be part of our family—strange as it is.

“It’ll take time,” Jack says, returning his small smile with one of his own.

“Time is what we have, Jack. What we’ll always have.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comment on original post:  
> ulskelesona said: omg, i wanna read what the other guardians say to that! I wanna hear their stories!!!!


End file.
